Cloudstaff

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Virtual Operations Lead of Offshoring of Findex

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Findex is a leading provider of integrated financial services, offering accounting, audit, tax, wealth management, and advisory solutions to individuals, businesses, and organizations

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Cloudstaff to accomplish?

• Address talent scarcity
• Free up onshore accountants to act as advisors
• Leverage labor arbitrage benefits to reinvest in onshore staff at the right level & automation

SOLUTION

How did you find Cloudstaff?

Online Search

Why did you select Cloudstaff over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Company values aligned

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Cloudstaff has been a valuable partner for Findex, helping scale offshore advisor support and client services roles across Audit, Accounting & Tax, and Wealth Management. Key deliverables include recruiting and onboarding skilled professionals, enabling onshore teams to focus on higher-value, client-facing advisory work.  Their cost-efficient labor model allowed Findex to reinvest savings into automation and technology, while performance monitoring and regular reporting ensured alignment with Findex’s goals. Overall, Cloudstaff's offshore solutions have driven operational efficiency, scalability, and growth for Findex.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate success include increased onshore capacity, as staff focused on high-value advisory work, and significant cost savings through offshore labor arbitrage, which we were able to reinvest into our onshore staff and technology solutions.

Cloudstaff enabled Findex to scale staffing efficiently during growth periods and continues to support strategic growth plans. Regular performance monitoring showed improvements in productivity and quality of work from offshore teams, meeting key performance indicators and client satisfaction targets.

Additionally, Cloudstaff's efficient recruitment process reduced time to hire, ensuring quick role fulfillment and smooth business operations.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Cloudstaff consistently delivered items on time and met our expectations in terms of timelines and quality. When challenges arise, they're proactive in adapting to our needs, making necessary adjustments based on our feedback. Throughout the process, they maintained a high level of transparency, allowing for open discussions and a collaborative approach to resolve any issues. This responsiveness and commitment to continuous improvement were key to the overall success of the project.

What was your primary form of communication with Cloudstaff?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

What we find most impressive and unique about Cloudstaff is their genuine commitment to valuing their employees. They invest significantly in ensuring that their staff are happy, engaged, and well-supported, which translates into a balanced and highly effective workforce that delivers quality work.

The Account Management team is proactive, approachable, and friendly, and we've built a strong, collaborative working relationship with them. The level of respect and warmth they extend to us as a client creates a positive and productive partnership.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Cloudstaff could have done differently?

One area for improvement would be in the systems and processes that fall outside the standard day-to-day operations. For instance, the secondment and relocation process for onshore staff could have been more streamlined and efficient. While the core services performed by Cloudstaff were consistently strong, enhancements in these additional processes would have further optimized the overall experience.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

My company provides financing in two industries: transportation and e-commerce. As the CEO, I oversee our operations though I’m mostly working in product, right now.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cloudstaff?

We approached Cloudstaff to support our loan processing operations, which includes back-office tasks and some voice BPO work.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

Cloudstaff works as an extension of our operations team to help process customer loans. Their duties are the same as ours — it’s a combination of back-office work like data entry and voice services. If they have any questions about a customer’s loan, they’ll reach out to the customer or any other third-party over the phone for clarification.

What is the team composition? 

Our original plan was to start with five people and expand to 20 by the end of the year. But, a lot of things changed in 2020, so we’re currently working with just three individuals who report back to our US-based operations manager. They also have another team working with our parent company in a similar capacity.

We were very explicit about wanting to be involved in the hiring process. Even though they’re legally employed by Cloudstaff, we consider them a part of our team. That’s why it was so important for us to interview all candidates before making the hiring decision.

The first few interview rounds helped us calibrate the kind of candidates we were after. A few candidates didn’t have enough experience, so we provided feedback to Cloudstaff, and they accommodated. There’s also an account manager who handles any HR/admin needs.

How did you come to work with Cloudstaff?

We were looking for a company that had strong English skills. Pricing was obviously another important factor. That led me to research potential partners in the Philippines. 

I contacted about 20–30 companies, including Cloudstaff, and evaluated them using a large comparison board with key parameters. Eventually, I set up in-person meetings with Cloudstaff, visited their offices, and spoke to their team members. They were the definite winners.

How much have you invested with them?

While I can’t go into detail about our direct fees, the pricing depends on the individual’s skill level. That means a more experienced, capable team member will require higher fees than a junior resource.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working with them since June 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

It’s a bit early for us to make any concrete conclusions. We’ve decided to analyze their performance once we reach the three-month mark, but so far we feel confident in their skills. They’re smart, capable people with good work ethic. 

They’re also able to take over complicated tasks. Our general manager is a lawyer by education, so she’s particular about legal processes. Cloudstaff’s team has kept flexible on that front, which makes them easy to work with. Everything they’ve done so far is quick and professional.

How did Cloudstaff perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re great at account management. Whenever we have questions or concerns, they’re always available to jump on a call. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

My biggest impression when visiting them was that they’re clearly invested in their customer relationships. On the two days when I was in Manila, I had to tour 7–8 other companies. But, by the time I could meet them, their main offices were closed. 

Their CEO drove over two hours to meet me at their Manila location to show their processes and internal systems, even though we weren’t a huge account for them.

What’s more, their team is highly focused on the office environment. They try to have events and team building activities so that everyone feels like they’re part of a fun environment. I assume that has a positive impact on their attrition rates.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We spent a lot of time calibrating during the hiring process. There was 1–2 other companies that had a more robust assessment process for language skills, math skills, and so forth. Cloudstaff could save time by implementing something similar. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don’t be afraid to ask for more — they’re flexible and ready to meet you halfway. You should also be specific about the skills and capabilities that you want and be quick to provide constructive feedback to the hiring team. It might end up being a slower process, but you’ll get the right candidates.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am one fo the co-founder/owners of the company. My position is responsible for sales and production.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Cloudstaff?

We hired Cloudstaff to find a pioneer to start our sales team. The Cloudstaffer was responsible for managing inbound leads to bringing them to a sale and then facilitating all items needed to bring that order to the production phase.

What were your goals for this project?

To regain time so that we could have the owners focus more on growing the business as opposed to being involved in the day to day responsibilities associated with sales and pre-production.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We interviewed 3 companies and found Cloudstaff to be the most professional, thorough, and good provided for talent.

Describe the project in detail.

Once we selected this vendor they presented us with the resumes of 6 candidates that they feel best suited the project we described to them. We wanted candidates with a sales background, college education, and good English speaking skills. We then went through 3 rounds of interviews before we narrowed down our selection. Once we selected our team member we set a date for their start and handled the team member onboarding ourselves.

What was the team composition?

We had 2 people involved from the vendor side to find, present, and schedule interviews with the candidates. The two person team was involved from start to finish.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Our Cloudstaffer has shown the ability to pivot from role to role as we determined how his strengths were best suited. He now trains other employees, manages multiple clients, meets his sales goals, and is coming up on a 1 year anniversary with us.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The initial stages of bringing the team member on board were good and fairly seamless. We manage everything in terms of day to day with the client and have trained them in the technologies we use like Zoho, Printavo, Google Docs, Adobe Creative Suite.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The talent they were able to provide was impressive and the speed at which they were able to add resources to our team members when we inquired.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I would like to have an example of written english during the interview process given much of our communication is done through email.